Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between AAUS certification and AAUS membership?

How do I become an AAUS certified diver? Does AAUS offer classes directly?

How does the AAUS certification work when you are no longer part of a specific institution (e.g., university), and you become an individual (e.g., I got my AAUS certificate as a graduate student and now that I graduated and I am no longer a student)?

What are the criteria to become an individual member of AAUS?

What are the criteria to become an Organizational Member of AAUS?

How do I begin the Organizational Member application process?


What is the difference between AAUS certification and AAUS membership?

AAUS certification or AAUS science diver training occurs when a diver is trained through an AAUS Organizational member as an AAUS scientific diver.  AAUS membership occurs when an individual chooses to join the Academy.  Certification does not equal membership.  Certified divers must actively join AAUS if they wish to become members. Conversely, membership in AAUS does NOT denote an active AAUS science diver status.  In fact, anyone can join AAUS as a member, even non-divers.


How do I become an AAUS certified diver? Does AAUS offer classes directly?

One of the common misunderstandings about AAUS is that, unlike the traditional recreational diving model, it is not a certifying agency. It provides consensual standards for safe diving to the member organizations which, in turn, train and qualify the divers under their oversight. Generally speaking, this requires some kind of affiliation with the organizational member because of workman's comp and other insurance issues but if you can get past that, then a 100 hr. training course in advanced techniques which includes 12 dives, usually offered by the organizational member, is required to become a scientific diver.Click here to view a list of current organizational members.


How does the AAUS certification work when you are no longer part of a specific institution (e.g., university), and you become an individual (e.g., I got my AAUS certificate as a graduate student and now that I graduated and I am no longer a student)?

The DCB of your employer oversees your diving through the DSO. When you are no longer employed by or the student of the organizational member you become, in effect, an orphan until employed by another organizational member. Full Individual Members of AAUS must demonstrate that they have been trained as scientific divers but do not necessarily enjoy the privileges of organizational members, mostly because there is no guarantee of oversight. This differs from the recreational model where you are credentialed for life by the organization. AAUS was formed in response to OSHA's ability to regulate scientific diving because of the employee/employer relationship in scientific diving and so the responsibility is properly vested in the organization/employer.


What are the criteria to become an individual member of AAUS?

Individual membership is offered to anyone who chooses to join.  If you are an active scientific diver (active as defined by AAUS is 12 dives in the past year) and can garner endorsement from a current Full member of AAUS, then you should apply as a Full Voting Member.  You will be asked to supply your scientific diver training and activity as well as the name of your endorser in the application process.   If you are either an inactive scientific diver or not a scientific diver, you may apply for Associate membership.  Additionally, we offer a student membership at a reduced rate.  See more at membership levels. 


What are the criteria to become an Organizational Member of AAUS?

An Organizational Member is any public or private research or educational organization or institution that:

  • has adopted a diving safety program and Manual for Diving Safety that meets or exceeds the Scientific Diving Standards of the AAUS,
  • agrees to submit for prior approval by the Diving Standards Committee of the AAUS, all proposed changes or modifications to that diving safety program or that Manual of Diving Safety,
  • agrees to adopt promptly and adhere to the diving standards and procedures established from time to time by the AAUS,
  • agrees to report promptly diving accidents on forms provided by the AAUS,
  • agrees to accommodate on-site visitations from time to time by authorized representatives of the AAUS, evaluating modes of diving, diving equipment, maintenance and general operating procedures, and other scientific diving policies, standards, programs and practices,
  • agrees to submit a listing of their Diving Safety Officer(s) and diving control board members to the AAUS (AAUS policy requires that all members of an OM DCB must submit Individual Membership applications and a majority of your DCB must qualify for and be listed as Full Members).

 


How do I begin the Organizational Member application process?

The AAUS Organizational Member (OM) application can be accessed by selecting "Join/Application/Organizational" from the top menu bar. The DSO for the applying organization MUST be an active individual member of AAUS prior to the Organization applying for membership.  If the DSO is not currently a member, they can contact the AAUS office for a promo code to waive their individual member fees during the OM application process.  The first page of the OM application contains instructions specific to the application process and other preliminary information for the applying OM.


 

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